Iraq PM tells Bush U.S. undermining Baghdad

WASHINGTON — Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki told President Bush on Monday that U.S. officials have been undermining his government, and sought reassurance that the administration was not preparing to abandon him.

During a 15-minute morning phone call, Maliki said he was concerned that U.S. officials had openly suggested imposing a two-month deadline for him to gain control of militias and quell sectarian violence, said White House Press Secretary Tony Snow.

Maliki said that calls for such a deadline, and proposals for a three-way partition of Iraq, "were undermining his government," Snow said.

Snow said that Bush, who initiated the phone call, encouraged the prime minister "to ignore rumors that the United States government was seeking to impose a timeline on the Maliki government."

But when asked whether Bush had "total confidence" in Maliki's Shiite-dominated government, Snow said the president "believes the prime minister is doing everything in his power" to stem the country's raging violence, adding, "There has to be more to be done. The violence levels are absolutely unacceptable."

Read the rest at the LA Times

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